Coin operated gas meter



(No Model.)

4 Sheets-Sheet A1. D. ORME. GOIN OPBRATEDv GAS METER.

Patented May 16, 1893.

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(No Model.) 4 SheetsSheet 2.

D. ORME. COIN OPBRATED GAS METER.

Patented May 16, 1893.

(No Model.) 4 Sheets--Sheet 3.

D. ORME. l v GOIN OPERATED GAS METER.

Pate'nted May 16, 1893;

'lNvENToRA @M6 @y wygq l (No Model.) 4 sheets-sheen 4.

D. ORME. COIN OPERATBD GAS METER.

No. 497,682. 'Patented May? 16,l 189s.

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"1c-TED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

DANIEL ORME, oF oLDHAM, ENGLAND.

`COIN-OPERATED GAS-METER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 497,682, dated May 16,1893.

Application filed December 10, 1891. Serial No. 414,629. (No model.)

1'0 @Z w/wm t may concern.: Y Be it known that I, DANIEL ORME, a subjectof the Queen of Great Britain and Ireland, .residing at 95 Queens Road,Old.ham,in the county of Lancaster, England, have invented certain newand useful Improvements in Prepayment Gas-Meters, for automaticallysupplying a predetermined quantity of gas in exchange for an insertedcoin or coins or [o token or equivalents for value; and I do herebydeclare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of theinvention, which .will enable others skilled in the art to which yitappertains to make and use the same.

My said invention relates to pre-payment gas meters through which apre-determined quantity of gas is allowed tov pass to the consumer onthe insertion into a slit or receptacle of a coin or coins or otherequivalent tozo ken or tokens representing the value of the requiredquantity of gas.

The invention is applicable to either wet I will now proceed moreparticularly to de! scribe the same reference being had to the annexedlive sheetsof illustrative drawings:

Figure l is a front view of a pre-payment wet meter constructedinaccordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is asimilar view with the frontplate and dials removed to show the mechanism.` Fig. 3 is a side view ofthe meter at the right hand side of Figs. l and 2 the coin receivingframe or cylinder and pocket being removed to show more clearly theadjustable stop and ratchet arrangement. Fig. 4 is a similar view thecoin box and coin receiving cylinderbeing shown in section. Fig. 5 is aview partly in section of the meterbfrom the back, showing clearly theconnection of the coin receiving mechanism with the mechanism of themeter. Fig. 6 is a side View of the mechanism of the meter. Figa 7 is aseparate view of the pawl carrier and notched stop disk. Fig. 8 shows ainode of automatically sealing a wet meter to prevent passage of gasafter the drumhas been arrested.

revolving dialjz.

Referring in the first place to Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 themechanism is Vcontained within a suitable casing similar to thatshowninthe drawings and may be said to consist of two divisions, namely, thegearing and stop mechanism situated behind the dial A and operated -bythe upshaft B and the coin receiving mechanism situated at the back andoperated by the handle c.

I will describe the apparatus behind the dial first and then I shalldescribe the coin mechanism and show its effect in operating andcontrolling the said apparatus.

As already said the gearing behind the dial is operated from theup-shaft B or it might be from any 'other suitable working pai-tof themeter. The shaft B carries a worm a which gears with a worm wheel bwhich is fast on the spindle c of the pointer c'. The same spindle ccarriesasecond toothed wheel d Fig. 6 and a pinion e. The wheel d gearswith a toothed spur-wheelf. The axis upon which the spur wheelfismounted consists of a central through spindle gcarrying at one endandfixed thereon the worm wheel hand escapement disk rand at the otherend the finger g.V Upon the spindle g there is also mounted a sleeve jthe said sleeve carrying secured thereto a toothed Wheel j and also anouter Upon a'prolongation of the sleeve j there is mounted looselytheaforesaid spur wheelfand the said spur wheelfcarries affixed to ita'toothed or recessed disk lo. The end of the prolongation of the sleevej carries fixed thereon a pawl carrier Z and upon the said pawl carrierlis pivoted at Z a pawl m which is arranged to engage with the tootheddisk 7c. Upon the pawl m I pivot a secondary smaller pawl n withinclined faces as shown (see Fig. 5) which is intended to drop into thenotch in the escapement disk 1.' when the said notch and pawl comeopposite to each other. It will be observed that owing to the presenceof a prop or projection m from the pawlm which projection m engages withthe pawl n the rising of the pawl n takes place at the same time withthe larger pawl m and clears it from the toothed disk 7c by means of theinclined faces of said-,pawl engaging with the sides of the notch K.Similarly when the smaller pawl n drops into the f notch in theescapement disk i the larger pawl meter.

m is at the same time permitted to engage with the toothed disk 71:. Aspring o extending from an arm Z2 of the pawl carrierl presses on theback ot the pawl m and thus forces the two pawls into engagement whenthe notch in the escapement disk 1I comes opposite to the pawl n. Theperiphery of the toothed disk la is formed with as many notches orrecesses as conveniently possible so as to provide that practically oneof the notches in the disk 7s shall always be beneath and ready toreceive the pawl m When the pawl 'n drops into the notch in theescapement disk fi. The toothed disk 7c and the escapement disk 1J thusprovide a double locking arrangement and the reason whyI provide thetoothed disk 7s in addition to the escapement disk e' is simply becausethere is so long a train of gearing between the 11p-shaft and the axisof the escapement disk 11 that to attempt to stop the action of themeter against so much multi-4 plying gearing would almost certainlyentail breakage of some ot the intermediate wheels and pinions. It wouldin other words be like applying force to the shortest portion of afulcrumed lever instead of to the longest end. I therefore provide thetoothed disk 7a fixed to its companion spur wheelf which gears as hasbeen said with a toothed Wheel alongside of the worm wheel which isdriven from the up-shaft B. Thus when I arrest the motion of the disk r,and spur Wheelf they immediately hind the worm wheel operated from thelip-shaft and stop the meter Without any straining of intermediateparts.

The gearing which operates the pawl carrier and pawl and the pointers onthe dial is as follows: The pinion e on the axis c gears with the wheele. On the axis ot' the wheel e is a pinion e2 which gears with a wheele3. On the axis of the wheel e3 is a pinion e4 gearing with the wheel jalready referred to as a fixture on the sleeve j. The wheel j alsodrives a train of gearing p p p2 psp the axes of the wheels 192194carrying the pointers q r which appear in Fig. l. The pointer or index cis chiefly for the purpose ot' testing the meter. The finger g' showsthe consumer the amount of gas paid for and not yet consumed. Thepointers q r show a continuous and cu mulative record ofthe gas passedthrough the It will be evident that as the finger g' is fixed on theaxis g the turning of the axis g will move the finger g forward say inthe direction of the arrow Fig. l and after- `and permit or eectrotation of the spindle g to such a degree as will allow the meter topass a quantity of gas correspondlng to the snm paid. As clearly seenfrom the drawings the coin receiving cylinder s is contained within acasing t. The coin receiving cylin der s consists of a simple ringsupported on a central spindle s which is supported in a sleeve bearingformed for it in the cover u. The spindle and cylinder are turned by thehandle C. The cylinder s contains apocket s2 to receive the coins whichare dropped into the said pocket through a slit t in the casing t. Aspring c at the bottomof the` pocket gives the coin an elastic support.Two stops are provided to limit the play of the coin receiving cylinders. One stop w projects from the adjustment disk n and prevents the coinreceiving cylinder from moving farther to that side; another stop yprojecting from the cover u prevents the cylinder from being moved roundfarther than is necessary to discharge the coin through anotherl slit t2in the casing, into the coin receptacle a Figs. 1 and 2. Terminal stopsy 'y2 are also provided one being on the casing t and the other on thedisk The inner circumference of the casing t carries an internal ratchetrack 3 extending from the inlet slit L" to the outlet slit 252. As thecoin is carried round by the cylinder s it is held with an elasticpressure by the spring c against the ratchet rack, the edge of the coinserving as a pawl which permits of the rotation of the coin cylinder inthe direction of the arrow (Fig. 4) but pref` vents it from being movedback until after the coin cylinder has been moved round sufiiciently farto drop the coin through the delivery slot into the coin receptacle.rlhe adjustment disk is carried on a projection which is slid into ahollow spindle l which is supported in bearings in the casing and thespindle l is formed with a worm 2 which cngages with the worm wheel halready referred to as being fast on the spindle g. Consequently anymovement of the Spindle l will correspondingly revolve the spindle g.

As I have already said in the former part of my specification a salientfeature ot my invention is the capability ot' adjusting the mechanism sothat with a coin or token ot' a fixed value the quantity ot' gas to, bedeliv ered therefor can be regulated according to the local or currentprice of gas. To elect this adjustment I place a movable stop 3 on theface of the adjustment disk :n and in the path of the coin as it iscarried round by the cylinders. In Fig. 5 the dotted circumference ofthe coin appears projecting from the side of the pocket and overagainstl lthe stop 3 which it will strike when carried round. Theadjustment disk has a number of holes 4, screw-threaded to receive a setscrew 5 which passes through the movable stop 3. The range ofadjustmentgiven by the holes 4 represents th'e range from the minimum tothe maximum price of gas. It will be evident therefore that the stop 3can be adjusted and fixed in any position corresponding to a certaincurrent price of gas. It the price of IOS IIO

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` gas should increase or decrease the stop 3 can 'finger g.

be adjusted to meet -the variations. coin or token is carried round bythe coin cylinder s it encounters the stop 3 sooner or later accordingto the position of the stop and then carries round with it the disk or.This turns the spindle 1 and worm 2 and effects the rotation of thespindle g, escapement disk c' and finger g which plainlyv indicates onthe revoluble dial L7'2 what quantity of gas stands to the credit of theconsumer. It will be evident that the return of the coin cylinder s toits normal position, that is to say with'the coin pocket s2 opposite tothe receiving slit t, must be effected without at the same timereversing the spindle 1 since this would merely return the various partsto the position from l whence they started. I thereforek form a ratchetconnection between the disk a; and the spindle l so thatthe said spindlecan be easily turned in the direction which will advance the parts butis locked and held while the coin receiving cylinder is being broughtback to its starting point. To effect this I mount the disk a: looselyupon the end of the spindle 1 (see Figs. 3 and 5) a stump, or projectionentering a hole bored v in the spindle 1. -1 Aratchet wheel 5 is fixedon the spindle 1 behind the disk .rand a pawl 6 pivoted to the disk zcengages with the ratchet wheel 5 in such -a manner that when the disk n:is rotated in the direction of thearrow Fig. 3 the pawl 6 takes roundwith it the saidratchet wheel thus revolving the spindle 1 and advancingthe parts as alreadydescribed. On the return of the disk a: by thereversal of the coin cylinder the pawl 6 slips over the teeth of theratchet wheel while' at the same time the weighted pawl 7 which ispivoted at 7 to the casing t locks the ratchet wheel 5 and prevents itfrom being dragged back by the pawl 6. Thus the spin-v dle 1 is rotatedin one direction only.

When the apparatus is at rest and the iin` ger 'g' stands at o on therevoluble dial L7'2 the escapement disk and the toothed disk Icare bothheld by the pawls m fa which have dropped into their respective notchesas shown for example at Fig. 5. The coin receiving cylinder being in theposition shown at Fig. 4, I

drop a suitable coin or token into the pocket S2A through the slit t. Ithen turnfthe coin cylinder s by means of the handle c the edge of thecoin engaging with the internal rack t5 as it is carried round until thecoin comes opposite to the delivery slit t2 through which it drops intothe coin receptacle (z. By thus turning the coin cylinderthe shaft 1 isrotated thereby revolving the spindle g, escapement diskz' and By thismovement the pawl 'n is lifted out by means of the reverse movement ofthe disk I of its notch in the escapement disk 11 so as to rest on theperiphery of the disk vandthis displacement of the pawl n also lifts Asthe the pawl m clear ofthe toothed disk lo. The escapement diskt' ismoved round a distance the'extent of which is regulated' by the positionof the stop 3 on the disk a: which as has been said is adjusted tocorrespond `with the scribed gearing in such a manner that the wheel jand sleeve j are rotated the sleevej carrying round the pawl carrier Zand pawls vm n. The pawls are-thus carried slowly round until the pawl novertakes andgdrops into the notch inthe stop disk t' the pawl m at thesaine time dropping into one of the notches inthe l disk lc. Thishappens when .the quantity of gas paid for has been consumed and the apfparatus is thereby locked and helduntil again released by the insertionof money and the operation of the coin receiving cylinder is ashereinbefore described. The coin receptacle z for receiving the coins ortokens dropped out of the coin receiving cylinder consists of a `boxsecured by means which are most clearly shown at Fig. 5. An opening 9 onthe front of the' box carries a screw 8 which engages with a nut 8projecting downward from the 4.casing t. The head of the screw 8 isformed so as to engage with a similarlyv formed key whereby the screwcan be turned.

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The screw 8 engages with a nut 8 forming i part of the casing. To securethe box or to disengage itv the key is inserted into the' Aopening andis caused to turn the screw 8'- and thus release or secure the box z. Asan additional security I might introduce across the bore of the opening9 a soft metal rivet 10 placed in position and stampedfor impressed atone or both ends witha private .mark or stamp of the company orcollector.

This would form a safeguard against dishonest attempts to open the boxand abstract the coins.y Any other suitable or sufficiently secure lockor fastening might be substituted for the contrivance described.

The foregoingigures.illustrate the application of my invention to a wetmeter. It

will however be apparent that with some slight i1'1` modifications theinvention can be used conjunction with a dry meter.

What I claim is- 1. in a coin-operated gas meter, thecombination of theshaft B, operated by the meter; shaft g, carrying a pointer g; asleevej, carrying a movable dial jz; connections between IZO said shaftB and said sleevej; a ratchet wheel k, loosely mounted on said sleeve j;connec- `tions between said ratchet wheel la and said shaft B;coin-operated mechanism, operating in connectlon with said shaft g; anescapement disk t', on said shaft g; a pawl rm, se-` shaft g, carrying apointer arm g a sleevej,`

mounted on said shaft g, and carrying a movable dial ji; a ratchet wheel7a, loosely mount.- ed on said sleevej; connections between said shaftB, and said sleeve j, and between said shaft B, and said ratchet wheelIt; an escapement disk i, on said shaft g; a pawl carrier Z, secured tosaid sleeve j; a pawl m, pivoted to said pawl carrier Z, and engagingwith said ratchet wheel k; a pawl a, pivoted to said pawl m, andengaging with said escapement disk i, and arranged when elevated toengage with the stud m', on the pawl m, so that when the pawl n, iselevated the pawl fm, will be elevated with it; and coin-controlledmechanism, acting in connection with said shaftg, substantially as setforth.

3. In a coin-controlled gas meter, the combination of a shaft B,operated by the meter; the shaft g, carrying the pointer g; the sleevej, surrounding said shaft g, and carrying a movable dial jz; a gearwheelj, rigidly secured to said sleevej; the train of gears e, e e2, e9,e4, and a worm a, connecting said shaft B, with said gear j',- a gearwheel f, loosely` mounted on said sleeve y; gear wheels d and b, andworm a, connecting said gear wheel f, with said shaft B a train of gearsp, p2, p3, and p4, operated by said gear wheel j', and carrying pointersq, and fr; a ratchet wheel k, secured to said gear f; an escapement disk1l, secured to said shaft (5 a pawl carrier Z, secured to said sleeve j;a pawl m, pivoted to said pawl carrier, and engaging with said ratchetwheel lc; a pawl n, pivoted to said pawl m, and engaging with theescapement disk i; and coin-controlled mechanism, operated in connectionwith the shaft g, substantially as described.

4. In a coin controlled gas meter, the combination of the shaft Boperated by the meter, shaft g, mechanism connecting the shafts B and gcarrying the pointer arm g; a sleevej carrying a movable dial jg;mechanism connecting the shaft B and the dial jf and intermediateconnections substantially as described, between said shaft B, and saidsleeve j, and between said shaft B and said shaft g; a shaft l,connecting with said shaft g; a coin receiving cylinder s, connectedwith said shaft 1, and a handle C, for rotating said coin receivingcylinder, substantially as described.

carrying a movable dial jz; mechanism connecting the shaft B and thedialj2 and intermediate connections between said shaft B, and saidsleeve j; connections between said shaft B, and said shaft g; a shaft I,carrying a worm 2, engaging with the gear 71., on the shaft g; a coinreceiving cylinder s; and a clutch connection between said coin receiving cylinder, and said shaft 1, substantially as set forth.

6. In acoin controlled gas meter, the combination of the shaft Boperated by the meter,

shaft-g, mechanism connecting the shafts B and g carrying the pointerarm g; a sleevej carrying a movable dial f2 and intermediate connectionsbetween said shaft B, and said sleevej; connections between said shaftB, and said shaft g; a shaft l carrying a worm 2, engaging with a gearh, on the shaft g; a coin receiving cylinder' s; an adjustment platecarried thereby, and connecting with the shaft 1; and an adjustment stop55,011 said adjustment plate substantially as described.

7. In acoin controlled gas meter, the combination of the shaft Boperated by the meter, shaft g, mechanism connecting the shafts B and gcarrying a pointer arm g; a sleeve 7' carrying a movable dialj2;mechanism connecting the shaft B and the dialj2 and intermediateconnections between said shaft B and said sleeve j; connections betweensaid shaft B, and said shaft g; a shaft 1, carrying a worm 2, engagingwith the gear wheel h, on the shaft g; a coin receiving cylinder s; anadjustment plate 00, carried by the coin receiving cylinder s, andconnecting with the shaft l; an adjustable stop 3 carried by theadjustment plate m; and said plate provided with a series of holes 4,4,with which said stop 3, engages, for the purpose mentioned,substantially as described.

8. In a coin controlled gas meter, the combination of the shaft Boperated by the meter, shaft g, mechanism connecting the shafts B and gcarrying the pointer arm g; a sleevej carrying the movable dial .72;mechanism connecting the shaft B and the dial ,7'2 and intermediateconnections between said shaft B, and said sleeve j; connections betweensaid shaft B, and said shaft g; a shaft l, carrying a worm 2, engagingwith the gear wheel h, on the shaft g; a coin receiving cylinder s;connecting with said shaft l; a coin receiving pocket s2, insaidcylinders; abearing spring o, within said pocket s2; the ratchet teethon the interior of the coin receiving cylinder s, and with which thecoin is adapted to engage, substantially as set forth.

9. In acoin controlled gas meter, the combination of the shaft Boperated by the meter, shaft g, mechanism connecting the shafts B and gcarrying the pointer arm g', a sleeve j carrying a movable dial jz,mechanism connecting the shaft B and the dialj and intermediateconnections between said shaft B,

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and said sleeve j; connections between said' droppedfas the cylinder isrevolved, substanshaft B, and said shaft g; a shaft 1, carrying'`rt'ially as set fort Iov a Worm 2, engaging with the gear wheel h, onThis specification signed and witnessed the y the shaft g; a, coinreceiving cylinder s, eon- 30th day ofOtober, 1891'.- 5 nectingwith saidshaft 1; a coin receiving I A pocket 32m-said cylinder, adapted toreceive Witnesses:

the coin; and a coin' receptacle z, beneath J. ENTWISLE,

said cylinder, and into lwhich the coin vis i R. W."IBB'ERSON.

DANIELv ORME.

